April 15, 2015—Officials from Robert Bosch LLC Automotive Aftermarket North America and Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIU) gathered at the SIU Transportation Education Center on April 9 to dedicate the new Bosch Automotive Parts Center.

The facility acts as the central hub for connecting students to the public, and for providing quality automotive parts for student laboratory work. It also houses the Automotive Technology department’s retail parts and service operations office.

The Parts Center is named in recognition of a $40,000 gift from Bosch to the university in support of its Automotive Technology Program, one of only a few in the nation to offer an Automotive Technology Baccalaureate Degree. Established in 1952, the competitive admission program has more than 250 national and international students with more than 70 graduates each year.

“Support from Bosch also allows the department’s outstanding faculty to remain involved in research and development of some of the most advanced technical and business innovations occurring in the industry,” commented Mike Behrmann. “The SIU and Bosch working relationship supports the entire educational environment for students, faculty and the public.”

The Bosch Automotive Aftermarket division regularly recruits and currently employs a number of graduates of the SIU Automotive Technology Program in a range of sales and marketing positions.